July | 2016 | dual personalities

July 7, 2016

The greatest thing since sliced bread

by chuckofish

Sliced bread was first sold on this day in 1928, advertised as “the greatest forward step in the baking industry since bread was wrapped.” This huge step for mankind was taken right here in my flyover state, in Chillicothe, Missouri!

I guess they are still pretty proud of this fact.

Also on this day in 1954 Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips played “That’s All Right” for the first time on his Red, Hot, and Blue show. Listeners began phoning in, eager to find out who the singer was. It was Elvis Presley.

The rest is history.

Today is also World Chocolate Day–celebrations include the consumption of chocolate. Well, duh.

So what is our message for today? Enjoy the day! Take a risk! Eat dessert!

Speaking of going for the gusto, here is a picture of the boy playing ice hockey in his men’s league.He wanted to play as a youngster, but we encouraged him to speed skate instead, which he did for several years. Then he switched to lacrosse. Good to see him finally padded up and happy! (BTW, where’s your mouth guard?!)

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July 6, 2016

You don’t say!

by chuckofish

As you know, Olivia de Havilland turned 100 last week.

Of course, you know that she is a two-time Oscar winner, but did you know that she is a devout Episcopalian and a lay reader to boot? Well, she is. Just like me.

She attends the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity in Paris (aka the American Cathedral in Paris).

Here is an interesting article about Olivia and how she feels about lay reading–and within it a link to another, longer article.

I completely agree with Olivia, of course. Can you imagine having Olivia de Havilland as a lay reader in your church?

By the way, Olivia de Havilland is the Star of the Month on TCM, so they will be showing her movies every Friday in the month of July. Here’s the schedule.

In other news: TCM is “Presenting Shane and 100 other westerns” this month on Tuesday and Wednesday nights! Check out the schedule here.

SO many good movies!

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July 5, 2016

Flyover weekend

by chuckofish

All my weekend plans were dashed, because Southwest Airlines canceled daughter #1’s flight and there was nothing else available until Sunday night that didn’t cost $1500.

I tried to rally myself, but was pretty unsuccessful. The OM and I ventured out to Franklin County to stock up on fireworks, which we did, but it was in a rainstorm, so, not much fun.

In fact, the whole weekend was a washout, literally and figuratively. Indeed, it rained all weekend.

Saturday night I watched 21 Jump Street AND 22 Jump Street in a sad attempt to amuse myself.

Channing Tatum did the trick, but the effects were fleeting. Sunday night I tried again with My Blue Heaven (1990) and Uncle Buck (1989).

Sigh. Monday morning I got up to watch the V.P. 4th of July Parade on television, only to find out that it had taken place on Saturday morning. Oops.

Thank goodness the boy and daughter #3 came over for the obligatory 4th of July bar-b-que.

We ate burgers and watermelon and then we drove over to the high school to watch the local flyover fireworks display.When we got home we shot off the fireworks we had bought on Saturday. I felt much better–alls well that ends well, as they say.

And you know what else they say:

Depression is boring, I think
and I would do better to make
some soup and light up the cave.*

Now it is Tuesday and the work week has begun. Oh joy.

*The quote is from the poem “The Fury of Rain Storms” by Anne Sexton.

7 Comments

July 4, 2016

Some prouder pageantry

by chuckofish

A toast to our brother, whose birthday we celebrate today! I’m sure he will be celebrating Thoreau-style.

The stillness was intense and almost conscious, as if it were a natural Sabbath, and we fancied that the morning was the evening of a celestial day. The air was so elastic and crystalline that it had the same effect on the landscape that a glass has on a picture, to give it an ideal remoteness and perfection. The landscape was clothed in a mild and quiet light, in which the woods and fences checkered and partitioned it with new regularity, and rough and uneven fields stretched away with lawn-like smoothness to the horizon, and the clouds, finely distinct and picturesque, seemed a fit drapery to hang over fairy-land. The world seemed decked for some holiday or prouder pageantry, with silken streamers flying, and the course of our lives to wind on before us like a green lane into a country maze, at the season when fruit-trees are in blossom.

Why should not our whole life and its scenery be actually thus fair and distinct? All our lives want a suitable background. They should at least, like the life of the anchorite, be as impressive to behold as objects in the desert, a broken shaft or crumbling mound against a limitless horizon. Character always secures for itself this advantage, and is thus distinct and unrelated to near or trivial objects, whether things or persons.

–from “A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers” by Henry David Thoreau

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July 2, 2016

A Sunlit Picture of Hell*

by chuckofish

It was a difficult week for England. First, the media continued moaning and hand-ringing over ‘Brexit’. I think this is the best response I’ve seen (it’s short, funny and very English):

Then, the English soccer team embarrassed itself by losing to Iceland. The Washington Post marked the event with the pithy headline, “England Exits Europe twice in Four Days.”

Moving into the weekend, the English faced the solemn commemoration of the Battle of the Somme. Yesterday, July 1st, marked the hundredth anniversary of the first day of the five-month long battle. An unmitigated disaster, the British forces suffered nearly 60,000 casualties (including over 20,000 dead) on day 1. Whole battalions were wiped out. Siegfried Sassoon wrote a vivid description of the opening scene in his war diary:

The Somme is still a big deal in England, where people still care about their history, probably because they actually learn about it in school.

British horse guards commemorating the Somme at Thiepval cemetary

British horse guards commemorating the Somme at Thiepval cemetery

After a week like that, it’s no wonder they’ll continue to ignore the start of American Independence on July 4th. Who’d want to be reminded of that? Unfortunately, except for barbecues and fireworks, we will ignore it too. Most people in this country seem either to reject our history or see it as irrelevant, but then they don’t really learn much about it in school, so what can one expect?

As you go into this 4th of July weekend, why not do something that’s actually related to Independence Day? Visit your local historical society, go to a parade, watch an appropriate movie (not The Patriot or the Independence Day movies!), read a history book, visit an old cemetery, or just think about how lucky you are to live here.

Lest we forget.

*Siegfried Sassoon

4 Comments

July 1, 2016

Tout va not bien

by chuckofish

Daughter #1’s flight was canceled and there were no flights until Sunday, so her trip to flyover country for the three-day weekend is not happening. The best laid plans, man…

2 Comments

July 1, 2016

Tout va bien

by chuckofish

Olivia de Havilland turns 100 today! You go, girl!

olivia-de-havilland-and-leslie-howard-1370928118_b

Here she is with Leslie Howard. I know just how you feel, Olivia.

And it’s Friday and daughter #1 is arriving tonight for a three-day weekend visit! Hazzah!

The forecast is for thunderstorms, but who cares?

At least we won’t be frying eggs on the pavement like we were last week.

We have no Big Plans beyond “toodling around” town in my Mini Cooper.

This is a treat for her. (She lives in NYC and hardly ever gets to ride in a car!)

We’ll probably visit the needlepoint store and maybe we’ll look at wallpaper samples at Reineke’s.

We’ll go out to lunch and go to our favorite flyover grocery store to stock up on the necessities.

Maybe we’ll fit in Grant’s Farm and Ted Drewes and maybe not. But in between those predicted showers we’ll get the OM to barb-b-que some hamburgers. The boy and daughter #3 will drop by.

We’ll celebrate the 4th of July flyover-style with a big parade–which is now televised! Mimosas, anyone?

Sounds like a plan to me. It’s the little things, right?

And, hey, why do I not have one of these?